Opportunities for Funding

Purpose:
Priorities for RMC LLAR Prop 68:

Develop urban recreation projects and habitat protection or restoration projects,Provide workforce development opportunities,Expand access to diverse populations,Secured matching funds

RMC’s LLAR Grants are specific to the Lower LA River corridor, considered within 1.5 miles of the main stem or tributary of the Lower LA River. Projects should be consistent with the Lower LA River Revitalization Plan.

Description:
Lower Los Angeles River:

The Lower Los Angeles River program area encompasses 1.5 miles on each side of the river’s lower 19-miles, from the City of Vernon to the City of Long Beach. The Lower Los Angeles River Revitalization Plan (LLARRP) describes opportunities for improving the environment of the Lower Los Angeles River. The plan was developed through a watershed-based, equitable, community-driven process and it identified 155 potential multi-benefit projects that would improve community economics, health, and equity; the public realm; and water and the environment along and in the vicinity of the river. The Plan has been incorporated into the watershed (LLARRP) describes opportunities for improving the environment of Lower Los Angeles River. The plan was developed through a watershed-based, equitable, community-driven process and it identified 155 potential multi-benefit projects that would improve community economics, health, equity; public realm; water along in vicinity river. Plan has been incorporated into Los Angeles River Master Plan Update. Funding will support projects in line with the LLARRP, immediate drought response, and long-term water resilience.

Funding for the SDAC specific grant program shall support Severely Disadvantaged Communities as defined by the state of California.

Applications:

Applications will be submitted in two phases: a Concept Proposal and a Full Application. Applicants will first submit a Concept Proposal that will be reviewed by RMC staff for consistency with RMC goals, any specific program priorities, and the strength of the proposed project. In addition, RMC staff will look at all Concept Proposals for location, need, project type, readiness, threats, cost, and cost share. RMC staff will offer applicants feedback regarding alignment with priorities, overall merit, and any ineligible costs. RMC staff will select Concept Proposals to move forward and will invite selected applicants to submit Full Applications. Applicants will be provided the Full Application upon RMC invitation. RMC staff are available to work with Applicants during the preparation of the Full Application, as needed. RMC may request Applicants to revise and resubmit Full Applications, as necessary.

It is strongly recommended that prospective applicants contact RMC staff for a consultation prior to submitting a Concept Proposal.

Eligible Applicants:
Nonprofit Public Agency Tribal Government

Eligible Applicants Include:

State agencies

Federal agencies

Tribal entities recognized on the current US Federal Register or the Native American Heritage Commission as a California Native American tribe

Local public agencies, including:

City or county

Water districts

School districts

Certified local conservation corps

Non-profit organizations with a 501(c)(3) designation

Joint Powers Authority (JPA)

Eligible Uses
The following uses are eligible for reimbursement from RMC grant funds:
■ Grant funds may be used for the acquisition, development, rehabilitation, restoration, and
protection of land and water resources.
■ Land acquisition costs may include appraisals, land, improvements, relocation costs, title reports, surveying, and escrow.
■ Land must be acquired from willing selle rs.
■ Facilities development projects must demonstrate a strong relationship and value to natural resource stewardship or environmental education.
■ Rehabilitation and restoration projects must be biologically and technically feasible.
■ Planning and pre- project costs can be included, though shall not exceed 20 percent
of total Grant Funds. (For complicated and extensive projects, this maximum may be increased to 25 percent on an exceptional basis. Please contact RMC with questions.) These costs may include consultant fees, plan documentation, specifications, CEQA/NEPA planning, and direct project management costs.
■ Indirect and Overhead expenses are allowed, though shall not exceed 10 percent
of total Grant Funds. Projects that have lower overhead will be deemed more competitive.

Ineligible Uses
The following uses are not eligible for reimbursement from RMC grant funds:
■ Operations and Maintenance related costs.
■ Projects that are located on school properties and not open to the general public or designed solely for school students, unless part of a multi - use project which allows for access from the general public.
■ Playground equipment and/or infrastructure such as swing sets and skate parks.
■ Facilities that do not have an environmental education focus or theme, such as basketball courts, hockey courts, etc. Multi- use projects may include these elements, but this program will not fund planning or development of such facilities.
■ Projects that cause erosion or contribute to flooding.
■ Projects on land or improved property acquired by condemnation from an unwilling seller.
■ BMP (Best Management Practices) directed projects that lack an improved habitat, low impact public recreation access, or environmental education components.
■ Projects traditionally provided by the private, non- government sector or by concessionaires, such as gift shops, equipment rentals, concession stands, etc., unless it can be shown that no private entrepreneur is willing to provide services, and there is demonstrated need for the Project.
■ Projects that exclusively fulfill other mitigation requirements.

The Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper Challenge (LQC Challenge) is a new challenge grant program from Patronicity. Changemakers with projects that use Lighter, Quicker, Cheaper strategies to make improvements to communities that are inexpensive, flexible, and quick to deploy are eligible to participate! Have a brainstorming session and fill out the prescreen form, which should take about 5 minutes, to join for your chance to win up to an additional $5,000 grant for your project!

Not quite ready to jump in? Join us for a group coaching webinar! If you want ideate on project possibilities, or learn more about crowdfunding and building your outreach strategies, join us in the webinars before or after you complete the prescreen form! Webinars are scheduled for August 28th and September 11th at 1:00 PM Eastern Time.
REGISTER BELOW.

How It Works
Challenge Grants are a new program from Patronicity where participating changemakers crowdfund for their projects at the same time, and one project will win the Challenge Grant–a bonus up to $5,000 in prize money to add to their project budget. The campaign that has the highest number of unique Patrons at the end of the program will win the Challenge Grant allowing them to add up to an additional $5,000 to their project budget and make it even bigger!

The process for the LQC challenge is:
Review the qualifications and guidelines below to make sure your project fits this challenge.
Complete the prescreen form to confirm eligibility.
After approval, or adjusting your project plan, you will be invited to create your crowdfunding campaign page.
Two LIVE group coaching webinars sharing best practices in crowdfunding and tips for building your page will be held on August 28th and September 11th at 1:00 PM Eastern Time. Webinars will be recorded. Webinar attendance not required to participate in program.
Crowdfunding pages are submitted for final review & approval before your campaign begins.
All LQC Challenge campaigns must run between October 1st and December 7th, 2024.
The winning campaign will be announced December 10th, 2024.
Funding for all campaigns is disbursed.

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) announces the opportunity to apply for $9,169,076 in competitive grants for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Public Transportation on Indian Reservations (Tribal Transit) Program under Assistance Listing Number 20.509.

This is an initial announcement for the FY 2024 round of this program.
As required by Federal public transportation law, funds will be awarded competitively for any purpose eligible under FTA’s Formula Grants for Rural Areas Program, including planning, capital, and operating assistance for tribal public transit services in rural areas.
Planning awards are capped at $50,000.
If more funding becomes available for the program before projects are selected, FTA may add it to the total funding available for award under this NOFO.

Eligible activities include planning, capital, and operating assistance for tribal transit services in rural areas.

Public transportation includes regular, continuing shared-ride surface transportation services open to the public or open to a segment of the public defined by age, disability, or low income.
Specific types of projects include:
capital investment for start-ups, replacement, or expansion needs;
operating assistance; and
planning projects up to $50,000.
Applications that include requests for more than one project type must identify the specific funds requested for each project type (planning, capital, or operating).
Indian tribes applying for capital replacement or expansion must describe the source of operating funds that will be available to support existing or expanded transit services.

Background
Outdoor activities are increasingly popular across the United States, and many communities are seeking to grow their outdoor recreation and tourism economy, while investing in their Main Streets and conserving forests and other natural lands. Encouraging growth on Main Streets and in existing neighborhoods while promoting outdoor recreation can help foster community revitalization, protect air and water quality, create jobs, support economic growth and diversification and offer new opportunities for people to connect with the natural world.

With Recreation Economy for Rural Communities assistance, a planning team will help communities bring together local residents and other stakeholders to decide on strategies and an action plan to grow the local outdoor recreation economy. The planning assistance process will take place over 8 to 12 months, with a focal point being a facilitated community workshop. At the workshop, participants will work together to identify a vision, goals, and specific actions to realize the locally set goals.

Partner communities are encouraged to pursue activities that foster environmentally friendly community development and Main Street revitalization through the conservation and sustainable use of public or private forests or other natural resources. Examples could include:

Ensuring local residents, including young people, have connections and opportunities related to nearby outdoor assets to foster community pride, good stewardship, and local economic benefits.
Creating or expanding trail networks to attract overnight visitors and new businesses and foster use by local residents.
Developing in-town amenities, such as broadband service; electric vehicle charging; housing; or shops, restaurants, or breweries, to serve residents and attract new visitors and residents with an interest in nearby outdoor assets.
Marketing local downtowns and Main Streets as gateways to nearby natural lands to capture and amplify outdoor recreation dollars.
Developing a community consensus on the management of outdoor assets to reduce potential conflicts and ensure sustainable use of resources.
Engaging in stewardship of outdoor recreation assets and mitigating and adapting to climate change and other environmental challenges.
Ensuring that all residents and visitors, particularly those who have not historically been engaged in outdoor recreation and Main Street revitalization efforts, have equitable access to and can benefit from the growing outdoor recreation economy.

The application includes the following questions:

What is the geographic scope that you would like to focus on for your RERC project (e.g., neighborhood, town, county, region)?
What is the area's demographic makeup (race, ethnicity, socioeconomic, age, etc.)?
What environmental challenges is your community facing? These issues could include mitigating and adapting to climate change; addressing invasive species, wildfire, flooding, and other disasters; land conservation and stewardship of natural resources and outdoor recreation assets; addressing challenges resulting from a transition from resource extraction to non-extractive uses; and others. How will this assistance help address the environmental challenges that you’ve identified?
What outdoor recreation assets and natural resources does your community have that you would like to build upon?
What challenges does your community face around economic development and creating access to economic opportunity for all?
What challenges does your community face in terms of Main Street and downtown revitalization? If your community doesn’t have a traditional “Main Street,” please share any relevant placemaking themes and challenges.
What plans and programs does your community envision and/or have underway to support outdoor recreation and Main Street revitalization (e.g., local comprehensive plan, regional economic development plan, state comprehensive outdoor recreation plan, etc.)? How will this assistance support or advance the development or implementation of those plans?
What strategies and opportunities to build on the outdoor recreation economy and strengthen Main Street revitalization would you like to explore? How would you like to build upon your natural assets with a focus on economic development?
How would a community workshop through the Recreation Economy for Rural Communities program help you achieve your outdoor recreation and Main Street revitalization goals?
How will your community engage with, encourage participation from, and/or increase access to outdoor recreation for underserved community members, including people of color, people with disabilities, people who are experiencing economic distress, and others who have been underserved or otherwise left out of previous planning efforts? How would a RERC workshop assist in engaging these community members in conversations about outdoor recreation and Main Street revitalization?
As part of the RERC program, each selected community is asked to form a diverse steering committee to guide the project and participate in planning meetings in advance of the workshop. Having a steering committee that represents all segments of the local community leads to more meaningful participation among residents, community organizations, and other stakeholders. Local steering committees often include representatives from local, regional, and/or state government; community organizations that represent various interests within the community; businesses; residents; and others. Please identify who could participate in your local steering committee (name and organization they represent) in the space below.
Applicants must identify a point of contact from the lead organization who will be available for the duration of the project to lead coordination of local participation and to work with the planning assistance team.

Letters of support are not required. However, some applicants might wish to strengthen their applications by having partner organizations or local elected officials pledge to support the process and implementation of the resulting action plan. All letters of support should be uploaded as a single combined PDF file on the application page.

Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on October 16, 2024.

If you have questions about Recreation Economy for Rural Communities planning assistance or the application process, please read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) About Recreation Economy for Rural Communities.

If your question is not answered there, please email receconomy@epa.gov.

Small Ambulatory Program (SAP)

Section 306 of the IHCIA, P.L. 94-437, authorizes the IHS to award funds to Tribes and/or Tribal organizations for construction, expansion, or modernization of ambulatory health care facilities. Where non-Indians will be served in a facility, the funds awarded under this authority may be used only to support construction proportionate to services provided to eligible American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) people. In fiscal year 2024 the program received $25 million in funding. Participants in this program are selected competitively from eligible applicants.

Participants in this program are selected competitively from eligible applicants who meet the following criteria

Only federally recognized Tribes that operate non-IHS outpatient facilities under P.L. 93-638 contracts are eligible to apply for this program.

Facilities for which construction is funded under Section 301 or Section 307 of P.L. 94- 437 are not eligible for this type of program.

Priority will be given to Tribes that can demonstrate a need for increased ambulatory health care services and insufficient capacity to deliver such services.

The completed facility will be available to eligible Indians without regard to ability to pay or source of payment.

The applicant can demonstrate the ability to financially support services at the completed facility.

The completed facility will:
Have sufficient capacity to provide the required services.
Serve at least 500 eligible AI/AN people annually.
Provide care for a service area with a population of at least 2,000 eligible person

CHALLENGE STATEMENT AND THEMES
Tending the Spark
The Fire Grand Challenge seeks to reimagine how we live with fire. We are seeking
solutions that can transform local and systemic fire stewardship by braiding together
place-based knowledge with cutting-edge innovation, science, and technology. The
goal is to restore fire to its appropriate place in natural and social dynamics. Relevant
solutions can help scale beneficial fire and mechanical treatments, more profitably
utilize forest biomass, advance large-scale forest restoration, or ensure that
practitioners have access to actionable information at every stage of the fire cycle.
Solutions should incentivize the promotion and incorporation of Indigenous, rural, and
place-based knowledge and practices, collaboration across sectors, and economic
benefits of locally appropriate, community-centered fire and ecosystem
management. Solutions must demonstrate positive, measurable outcomes for
biodiversity, ecosystem health, and human well-being and should be designed to
achieve impact in the face of barriers such as restrictive policy frameworks and
workforce limitations.
The Challenge themes provide information on the types of innovations that the
Challenge seeks to incentivize, accelerate, and scale. The themes were developed to
guide technical applicants toward addressing key drivers of the fire crisis. Innovations
may fit under one or both of the themes; they are not mutually exclusive. All innovations
will be judged through the same process, regardless of the theme they fit within.

Theme 1. Scaling Innovative Ecosystem Stewardship
Innovations that enable and scale locally-appropriate and/or community-driven
ecosystem and fire stewardship throughout the fire cycle.
This challenge theme focuses on reestablishing appropriate fire regimes through
cost-effective, community-based ecosystem stewardship for fire preparedness and
management. Solutions may decrease the risk of ecologically damaging fire,
decrease the cost of mechanical thinning, promote the use of beneficial fire where
appropriate, or restore degraded or transformed ecosystems. Solutions should aim to
create or influence policy and/or economic incentives for collaborative, proactive,
and integrated ecosystem stewardship at meaningful scales, and under changing
climate and land use conditions, while incorporating or promoting local and placebased knowledge and practice.
Questions to consider:
• How can we transform land and watershed management practices to
restore ecosystem health, conserve biodiversity, and establish appropriate
fire regimes across Western North America?
• How can we utilize wildland fires as opportunities to establish locallyappropriate fire regimes in damaged landscapes, while considering future
needs driven by changing climate and land use?
• How can we increase the financial viability of sustainable ecosystem
management practices at scale, assisting communities in developing
thriving stewardship economies?
Examples of solutions could include, but are not limited to, innovations that:
• Enable more effective landscape-scale management using fire where
appropriate, such as solutions to promote prescribed and/or cultural
burning.
• Advance more effective and cost-efficient landscape management without
fire in ecosystems, or under conditions, where fire is inappropriate or
destructive.
• Enable novel fire management techniques by communities or local fire
brigades (including facilitating prescribed and/or cultural fire or suppression
where needed) through new technologies or novel applications of existing
systemic tools.

Enhance restoration of areas degraded by fire exclusion, including through
biomass removal or utilization.
• Create profitable opportunities for forest restoration, including through:
o Decreasing barriers (including cost) of processing, transporting, and
marketing forest biomass and residuals
o Contributing to portfolios of marketable forest products (such as
biomass, bioenergy, biochar, mass timber, or others) with
biodiversity and community benefits
o Creating opportunities for communities to benefit from ecosystem
stewardship
• Restore, protect, and/or cultivate locally valued natural and cultural
resources and biodiversity.
• Mitigate degradation of landscapes and watersheds after fires, including
from impacts such as landslides, soil erosion, and water pollution.
• Enable long-term planning, monitoring, and care for restoration efforts.
• Address logistical barriers to the delivery of technology, information, or
supplies to remote, difficult-to-access areas.

Theme 2. Synthesizing Diverse Knowledge
Innovations that promote transparency, knowledge exchange or application, and
broad access to information on fire dynamics and fire impacts throughout the fire
cycle.
This challenge theme focuses on solutions that translate knowledge or data into
relevant, timely, and actionable information that is available to all throughout the fire
cycle (before, during, and after a fire). Solutions may address access to, production
of, or communication of information to support situational awareness, facilitate realtime decision making, and prioritize capacities and resources before, during, and/or
after fire. This includes preventing and/or managing fire, facilitating prescribed or
beneficial fire, or understanding or mitigating fire impacts on biodiversity,
ecosystems, and communities. Solutions may incentivize information exchange
across scales, sectors, and jurisdictions and promote the integration of local
knowledge, practice, and data into systemic fire-related information flows.
Questions to consider:
• How can we uplift the voices and knowledge of Indigenous and rural
communities to improve systemic approaches to fire management, tailor
solutions to local contexts, and engage local actors, while protecting
knowledge and data sovereignty?
• How can we enhance communities’ capacity to understand, measure, and
create actionable information related to fire impacts on community and
ecosystem health and well-being?
• How can we mobilize the wealth of information that is being collected to
work across jurisdictions and operationalize proactive fire management at a
regional level?
Examples of solutions could include, but are not limited to, innovations that:
• Translate data into actionable information for all stages of the fire cycle.
• Inform actors of how to protect and/or cultivate valued ecological and
cultural resources during ecosystem restoration processes.
• Support situational awareness and coordination for proactive fire
management.
• Understand and incorporate implications of future climatic conditions into
landscape stewardship practices.

Promote information flows and enable planning and action across
jurisdictions and in remote locations.
• Facilitate the incorporation of place-based knowledge and practice into
systemic ecosystem and fire management and decision making for mutually
beneficial knowledge sharing.
• Facilitate the rediscovery and implementation of lost place-based
knowledge for fire or fire-related ecosystem stewardship.
• Increase communities ability to generate, access, and share actionable
information on post-fire impacts and on the success and durability of
restoration efforts.
• Capture and/or quantify long-term environmental, economic, health, and
social impacts of fire (or lack of fire) on ecosystems, biodiversity, and
human communities.
• Monitor post-fire impacts and allow for long-term adaptive management of
restoration and ecosystem stewardship efforts.
• Enhance local engagement in ecosystem stewardship and/or integrate
place-based knowledge and practices into systemic landscape
management.

COMPETITION GUIDELINES
We invite teams with ideas for ground-breaking innovations (including bold
adaptations to existing practices or technologies) to join us in transforming how we
live with fire.
There are two primary ways to engage with the Challenge’s innovation process: as a
technical applicant or as a partner community. Organizations or individuals with an
idea for an innovation will submit an application (detailed in this document) during the
open application phase, thereby becoming a technical applicant. Members of
communities who are interested in co-developing and field-testing innovations
submitted by technical applicants will submit a form (linked on the Challenge
website), which Challenge administrators will assess for fit.
Then, a third-party panel of evaluators and Conservation X Labs will create a shortlist
of the technical applicants with promising innovations and a shortlist of partner
communities. Conservation X Labs will then lead a matchmaking process in which
shortlisted technical applicants and partner communities will familiarize themselves
with each other, rank their desire to collaborate with each other, and match to create
teams (each required to have a technical applicant and a partner community) to
participate in the 9-month field-testing and acceleration phase. To be eligible to
become a finalist, teams must successfully match and have their field-testing plan
accepted by Challenge administrators. Finalists will then be named and awarded
$50,000 to fund their participation in the next phase.
Technical applicants should refer to the “Eligibility” and “Technical Evaluation
Criteria” sections for information on their unique pathways.
Indigenous, rural, or local communities interested in becoming partner
communities are encouraged to complete an interest & capacity form, linked here.
See “Navigating the Application Portal” for more details.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) (Pub. L. 117-169, Aug. 16, 2022) established the LCTM Program (23 U.S.C. 179), which provides funding for the use of construction materials that have substantially lower levels of GHG emissions.

The purpose of the LCTM Program is to reimburse the incrementally higher costs of using or provide an incentive1 amount to eligible recipients for the use, in projects, of construction materials and products that have substantially lower levels of embodied GHG emissions, as described by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), associated with all relevant stages of production, use, and disposal as compared to estimated industry averages of similar materials or products, hereafter referred to as low carbon transportation materials.
The program will also serve to help eligible transportation agencies update or develop specification language and conduct identification activities needed to demonstrate materials are appropriate for use on Federal-aid construction projects.

Funds made available for the LCTM Program will be awarded for the use of substantially lower carbon materials and products on construction projects funded under title 23 U.S.C. and necessary work to identify appropriateness for use of these materials on eligible projects.

FHWA is requesting applications from eligible applicants other than the State DOTs. State DOTs were eligible to apply for LCTM funds under a Request for Applications, posted on FHWA’s Webpage at www.fhwa.dot.gov/lowcarbon/funding.cfm.

As part of the LCTM Program, this notice will result in the distribution of up to $800 million, subject to the availability of funds. This notice describes the application requirements, selection, and evaluation criteria.

For the purposes of this NOFO, materials/products available for reimbursement or incentives are those identified by the EPA Administrator2. In alignment with the Administration’s Federal Buy Clean Initiative, EPA released an Interim Determination (ID) in December 20223 that outlined an approach to establish thresholds and data requirements for qualifying concrete (and cement), glass, asphalt mix, and steel materials/products that meet the substantially lower embodied carbon requirements. For purposes of this NOFO, these are the only materials/products categories that are currently eligible.

An agency shall determine the substantially lower embodied carbon thresholds (i.e., best performing 20 percent, 40 percent, and industry averages) for materials/products eligible for reimbursement or incentive under this program through the following options:
Option (1): An agency may reference the established thresholds as published on the FHWA Website4. Stakeholders from concrete, glass, asphalt, and steel industries are working to provide industry-average data to support implementation of the LCTM Program5.
Option (2): An agency may determine local or regional thresholds for concrete (and cement), glass, asphalt mix, and/or steel. In this option, the agency shall follow accepted International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards to develop thresholds. Agencies shall disclose the Global Warming Potential (GWP), the methodology for determining the percentiles and averages, the source(s) used for each material/product, and the parameters (including performance specification) used to set the GWP.

Agencies may also use a combination of these two options for this program. Under this NOFO, the LCTM Program will provide funds directly to recipients that will implement the provisions of the EPA’s ID for eligible low carbon transportation materials/products. Recipients may also be reimbursed for identification of eligible materials and work needed to determine their appropriateness for use on eligible projects, as discussed more in Section C Eligibility Information of this NOFO.

2. LCTM Program Goals
Program goals include, but are not limited to:

Increase the use of lower carbon materials and products that are used in projects funded under Title 23.

Facilitate the use of low carbon transportation materials while ensuring appropriateness for use in projects eligible under Title 23.

Promote technology transfer and enhance workforce development to increase the adoption of environmental quantification techniques used in decision making by transportation agencies.

Encourage eligible recipients to begin LCTM activities and build successful low carbon transportation material identification frameworks.

The LCTM Program will not fund entire construction projects, but provides funds for eligible activities highlighted in Section C.5, including the use of eligible materials on construction projects funded under 23 U.S.C., including projects on:

Federal-aid highways;

Tribal transportation facilities;

Federal lands transportation facilities; and

Federal lands access transportation facilities.

Funds are also available to use for activities required to develop a process to demonstrate
materials meet the standard of ‘substantially lower embodied carbon’ and are appropriate for use. For purposes of this program, eligible materials categories7 are concrete (and cement), glass, asphalt mix, and steel.

What is dignity for all?

The Dignity for All: LGBTQI+ Assistance Program is a consortium of six leading human rights and LGBTQI+ organizations that provides three short-term mechanisms to support LGBTQI+ movements: rapid-response financial assistance for individuals and CSOs under threat for their human rights work; project funding to CSOs/groups for time-sensitive initiatives; and safety and security trainings, including well-being and digital security. Dignity for All provides rapid response financial assistance to at-risk HRDs and CSOs to allow the continuation of their LGBTQI+ rights work. It supports short-term rapid response security, opportunity, and advocacy rapid response (SOAR) grants for CSOs/groups to counteract urgent threats and to take advantage of unexpected opportunities to advance the rights of LGBTQI+ people. Proactive security workshops and trainings including well-being support are available to assist organizations to continue their work more safely. We provide support in the following regions: Asia and the Pacific, Europe and Eurasia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and North Africa, and Sub-Saharan Africa.

WHAT can rapid response FINANCIAL assistance GRANTS be used TO SUPPORT?
Dignity for All provides small, short-term emergency grants to activists and organizations threatened because of their human rights work. These grants can support:

Legal Representation

Prison Visits

Trial Monitoring

Temporary Relocation

Dependent Support

Security

Equipment Replacement

Medical Expenses

 
What constitutes an emergency?
An emergency is an urgent need for assistance arising from threats to an HRD or CSO on the basis of their work on LGBTQI+ human rights. The threat needs to have occurred within the past 3 months. It can be a physical, virtual, or legal threat that is perpetrated by state actors, non-state actors, family, or community members.

WHO IS eligible for support?
Activist/Organization has a track record of human rights work of at least 6 months

Threat is related to human rights work and has occurred in the past 3 months

Independent references can verify threat and applicant’s history of human rights activism

Request should not seek funds for core operations costs or programmatic expenses

Organizations can be informal or unregistered, including journalist associations, networks, community-based organizations, student groups, and labor unions

HOW CAN YOU apply for rapid response financial assistance?
To apply, contact info@dignitylgbti.org and let us know how we can contact you securely before sending sensitive information. To apply by PGP/GPG encrypted email (recommended), please use our public key.

Applications are available in Arabic, English, Farsi, French, Kiswahili, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and Turkish.

About The Chatlos Foundation
The Chatlos Foundation proclaims the Glory of God by funding nonprofit organizations doing work in the United States and around the globe. Support is provided to organizations currently exempt by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States.

The Foundation’s areas of interest are:

Bible Colleges/Seminaries, Religious Causes, Medical Concerns, Liberal Arts Colleges and Social Concerns.

Placement of an organization within our categories is determined by the organization’s overall mission rather than the project under consideration.

BIBLE COLLEGES/SEMINARIES
Grants to Bible colleges and seminaries total 33% of Foundation distribution. History has shown grants in this category range in size from $5,000 to $20,000. To assure the Foundation that the philosophy of the institution is consistent with that of the Foundation, potential recipients are asked to sign our Statement of Faith.

RELIGIOUS CAUSES
Grants to religious organizations total 30% of Foundation distribution. History has shown that grants in this category range in size from $5,000 to $15,000.

LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES
Grants to liberal arts colleges total 7% of Foundation distribution. History has shown that grants in this category range in size from $2,500 to $7,500. Priority consideration is given to private colleges.

MEDICAL CONCERNS
Grants to medical organizations total 26% of Foundation distribution. History has shown that grants in this category range in size from $5,000 to $15,000.

SOCIAL CONCERNS
Grants to organizations involved in social concerns total 4% of distribution. History has shown that grants in this category range in size from $2,000 to $5,000. This category encompasses secular community programs which provide direct services such as child welfare, vocational training, prison alternatives, concerns for the aged and disabled, and men, women and families in crisis.

Giving Information

Non-profit organizations based in the United States that have been in existence for 2 or more years and are recognized as tax exempt by the IRS may apply for a grant.

Program support remains a current priority for the Foundation.

On an initial basis, the Foundation tends to fund requests for amounts less than $10,000.

It is important to note that it is not our intention to become a part of an annual budget. We expect the projects we fund to become independent of The Chatlos Foundation.

Many organizations are worthy of funding, however, our funding is limited. Applicants should understand that rejection of the proposal in no way signals rejection of the proposer.

The large number of requests we receive causes us to decline many proposals which are worthy of attention and funding.

Contributions cannot be made to organizations which discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, creed, age, or national origin.

The Foundation does not make scholarship grants directly to individuals but rather to educational institutions which in turn select recipients.

Exceptions are the Board’s Prerogative. Decisions of the Board of Trustees are Final.

Less emphasis is given to grant requests for:
• Bricks and Mortar
• Endowments
• Conference and administrative expenses
• Multi-year grants

We continue to be non-receptive to requests for:
• Medical research
• Support to individual church congregations and associated ministries
• Education below college level
• Organizations in existence for less than a two-year period as indicated by the date of their tax exempt letter from the IRS.
• The Arts
• Individuals
• Loans

OUR PROCESS

Any US based non-profit organization, that falls within the foundation guidelines, is welcome to submit a proposal for consideration.

There are no deadlines for submission of a request and all requests are responded to in writing.

We do not require, request or desire to receive Letters of Intent or Inquiry.

When a proposal is received, it is scheduled for our next available Preliminary Review Committee, which meets monthly. It is this Committee, comprised of Foundation Trustees, which will determine if the proposal will be reviewed by our full board of trustees for possible funding. You may expect the process to take approximately 180 days.

Grantees may receive only one grant per 12-month period. Organizations may resubmit six months after a denial.

We expect all organizations, which receive funding to furnish the Foundation with reports and updates on the outcome and success or failure of the project.

Time will not permit us to meet personally with all organizations initially seeking funds. Only those organizations that have received funding may visit our offices by appointment.
Address all inquiries to:

Grant Administrator
The Chatlos Foundation
P.O. Box 915048
Longwood, FL 32791-5048

Overview of the Arizona Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program
The purpose of the Arizona EECBG Program is to assist eligible local governments in creating and implementing strategies to:
● Reduce fossil fuel emissions in a manner that is environmentally sustainable and, to
the maximum extent practicable, maximizes benefits for local and regional communities;
● Reduce the total energy use of the eligible entities;
● Improve energy efficiency in the transportation sector, the building sector, and other appropriate sectors; and
● Build a clean and equitable energy economy that prioritizes disadvantaged
communities and promotes equity and inclusion in workforce opportunities and
deployment activities, consistent with the Justice40 Initiative.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) of 2021—also known as the Bipartisan
Infrastructure Law (BIL)—section 40552 provided funding for the Energy Efficiency and
Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program. The CFDA number assigned to the EECBG Program is 81.128. The Arizona Governor’s Office of Resiliency (OOR), which is the State Energy Office (SEO), received a formula allocation under the EECBG from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Consistent with USDOE requirements, at least sixty percent (60%) of the State’s formula allocation must be distributed to local governments that are ineligible for direct EECBG formula funding. The OOR is making funding available for specific categories of EECBG-allowable projects, as described in this Request for Grant Applications (RFGA).

Applicants should be aware that the funding made available through the EECBG program is subject to various federal requirements, including but not limited to, the Build America Buy America Act, the Davis-Bacon and Related Acts labor standards, and the National Environmental Protection Act:

● Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act: The BABA Requirement applies to articles,
materials, and supplies that are consumed in, incorporated into, or permanently affixed to
an EECBG-funded infrastructure project. Specifically, all iron and steel, all manufactured
products, and all construction materials used in the project must be produced in the
United States.1

● Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA): All projects funded, in whole or in part, by the
BIL that involve construction, alteration, or repair are required to follow Davis-Bacon
Act labor standards and comply with reporting requirements. Applications selected for
funding for construction, alteration, or repair projects are required to pay laborers and
mechanics the published prevailing wage, set by the U.S. Department of Labor through
wage determinations, on a weekly basis. Additionally, awarded subrecipients will be
required to maintain accurate records of hours worked and wages paid, and submit
certified payroll on a weekly basis in addition to other reporting to help ensure
compliance.2

● National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA): Compliance with the National
Environmental Protection Act is required to receive EECBG Program funds. For those
projects requiring NEPA review, the OOR will provide additional guidance for grantees
after the award process. Applicants should await further direction before obtaining
official NEPA review and approval.

Proposed local government activities to be supported by EECBG funding shall outline, in their proposal, the means by which subgrantees shall meet Justice40 requirements. Meeting Justice40 requirements shall be included in reporting submitted by subgrantees.

As the prime award for this funding was granted prior to October 1, 2024, these funds are not subject to the updated OMB Guidance for Federal Financial Assistance. These funds should be managed under Part 200 – Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR Part 200); Office of Management and Budget (OMB) at https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200?toc….

Eligible Activity Areas
Proposals may span a wide variety of technology areas including electric transportation,
renewable energy, and building efficiency and/or electrification. Applicants shall propose
programs and projects that align with one or more of the following eligible activity areas and
that will occur within the jurisdiction of the applying eligible entity:
1. Development and implementation of an energy efficiency and conservation strategy. The
activity must be for the development, in support of the development, or in support of the
implementation of a general strategy that outlines goals for energy efficiency or
conservation.
2. Retaining technical consultant services to assist the eligible entity in the development and
implementation of an energy efficiency and conservation strategy, including developing
methods to measure progress in achieving the goals identified in the strategy, and
developing and publishing annual reports, such as dissemination of energy plans and
progress updates.
3. Conducting residential and commercial building energy audits and/or energy usage
assessments, within the jurisdiction of the eligible entity.
4. The performance of energy efficiency retrofits. The retrofit may be of equipment (e.g., an
HVAC system and associated controls, appliances, or lighting) or a building. The retrofit
must result in energy savings (e.g., kwh/BTUs) or improved energy efficiency; must not be
for new construction or non-replacement equipment; and must occur within the jurisdiction
of the eligible entity.
5. Development and implementation of energy efficiency and conservation programs for
buildings and facilities within the jurisdiction of the eligible entity.
6. Development and implementation of programs to conserve energy used in transportation.
7. Development and implementation of building codes and inspection services to promote
building energy efficiency. The activity must be for the development, adoption and/or
implementation of building codes (including supporting the adoption and implementation
of model building energy codes or stretch codes), inspection services or
training/workshops to promote building energy efficiency.
8. Purchase and implementation of technologies to reduce, capture, and, to the maximum
extent practicable, use methane and other greenhouse gasses generated by landfills or
similar sources.
9. Replacement of traffic signals, street lighting, or street signs with energy efficient lighting
technologies. Generally, only the cost of the replacement lamp is eligible unless
replacement/upgrade of supporting structure (e.g., posts) is necessary to support the
replacement of the lamps. Regular maintenance is an ineligible cost.
10. Development, implementation, and installation on or in any government building of the
eligible entity of onsite renewable energy technology that generates electricity from
renewable resources, including solar energy, wind energy, fuel cells; and biomass.